Fluid mixing apparatus

ABSTRACT

A VORTEX FLUID MIXING APPARATUS IS PROVIDED FOR MIXING ONE FLUID TO ANOTHER IN A CONDUIT OR FOR CREATING A VORTEX IN FLUID PASSING THROUGH A TUBE BREAKING UP FLUID ENTRAINED TO THE SIDES OF THE TUBE. A TUBE IS PROVIDED HAVING A FLUID VORTEX MIXER ATTACHED TO THE INNER SURFACE OF THE TUBE FOR PRODUCING A VORTEX IN THE FLUID PASSING THROUGH THE TUBE. THE VORTEX MIXER IS AN ELONGATED MEMBER AND IS FIXEDLY ATTACHED TO THE INSIDE OF A TUBE EITHER SINGULARLY OR   IN PLURAL NUMBERS AND MAY BE USED IN MIXING A SECOND FLUID WITH THE FIRST BY HAVING SECOND FLUID ENTER THE TUBE AT THE BEGINNING OF THE VORTEX BEING GENERATED AND MAY HAVE A VORTEX MIXER ALSO PLACED IN THE FEEDER TUBE OR MAY BE FED INTO A VENTURI IN THE TUBE.

June 20, 1972 w. G. MEI DSKER FLUID MIXING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1Filed Oct. 9, 1970 FIG.5

Q Way/1e Medser M/VEA/TOK June 20, 1972 w G, MEDSKER 3,671,208

' FLUID MIXING APPARATUS Filed 001;. 9, 1970 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. H

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United States Patent O US. Cl. 48180 C 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THEDISCLOSURE -A vortex fluid mixing apparatus is provided for mixing onefluid to another in a conduit or for creating a vortex in fluid passingthrough a tube breaking up fluid entrained to the sides of the tube. Atube is provided having a fluid vortex mixer attached to the innersurface of the tube for producing a vortex in the fluid passing throughthe tube. The vortex mixer is an elongated member and is fixedlyattached to the inside of a tube either singularly or in plural numbersand may be used in mixing a second fluid with the first by having secondfluid enter the tube at the beginning of the vortex being generated andmay have a vortex mixer also placed in the feeder tube or may be fedinto a venturi in the tube.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to fluidmixers and especially to mixers adapted to mix rfluids passing throughtubes, or the like, and for mixing two or more fluids being combined atjunctions in tubes.

In the past it has been conventional practice to produce variouscirculating, whirling, swirling, or vortexes in fluids passing throughconduits passageways such as tubes of all sizes, for mixing the fluidsor for generating turbulence in the fluid. One of the most common waysof producing such action in fluid is through movable blades or vanessuch as in turbines which may be active by being driven by power sourcesuch as an electric motor driving a fan blade, or the like, or which maybe passive such as rotating blades or vanes rotated by the fluid passingthrough the conduit. It has also been suggested to control fluidspassing through the tubes with fixed members such as fixed parallelgrates or vanes to prevent any swirling motion in the fluid especiallyin liquids, and it has been common practice to obtain a swirling motionby placing a spiral or twisted member in a tube, dividing the tube intohalves or quarters, forcing the liqud to in turn in a circular motion.

The present invention is directed towards a device for mixing gaseoustype fluids passing through conduits or tubes in an economical mannerutilizing only simple fixed members attached to the inside of theconduit and especially to such a vortex producing device used to mix twoor more gaseous fluids by the metering of one of the fluids into themain tube while the main fluid is passing therethrough and which may beused in conjunction with such devices as venturis and aspirators toproduce an eflicient multiple fluid mixing system.

The present system also have the advantage of breaking up fluidsentrained to the inner surface of conduits.

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SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a vortex fluidmixing device having a tube, conduit, passageway, or the like, for afluid to pass through, which tube has a fluid vortex mixing memberfixedly attached to the inner surface of the tube, either singularly orin multiples, to produce a vortex in the fluid passing through the tube.Each of the vortex mixers is an elongated member having leading andtrailing edges, and having curved portions thereon, and is fixedlyattached with a leading edge either directly facing the oncoming fluidor at desired angles for producing a swirling motion in the fluidpassing through the tube. One or moreadditional tubes can be connectedto the main tube for metering additional gaseous type fluids into thebeginning of the vortex being generated to produce an improved mixing ofthe fluids being metered into the main tube. The metering can beperformed by the venturi appropriately located with or without anaspirator type metering arrangement and can also be improved by havingsimilar vortex mixers placed in the metering tubes so that a pair ofvortexes meet at the mixing junction. The present invention is wellsuited for mixing fluids and for use in devices such as carburetionsystems for internal combustion engines, and the like.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Other objects, features and advantagesof this invention will be apparent from a study of the writtendescription of the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG.

FIG. 3 illustrates a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of an embodiment of the present inventionplaced in the manifold of an internal combustion engine;

FIG. 6 is a view taken along line 6-6 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a view taken along line 77 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is a cross sectional view of an embodiment placed on a separateholding member;

FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line '9--9 of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a cross sectional view of another embodiment; and

FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken along line 11-11 of FIG. 10.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED I EMBODIMENTS Referring now to FIG. 1, thevortex fluid mixing device 10 is illustrated having a main tube orconduit 11 for passage of fluid in the direction of the arrow 12 andhaving a portion of the passageway 11 removed to show the fluid vortexmixer 13 fixedly attached to the inside of a tube 11 by bolts 14. Itwill of course be clear that the mixer 13 can be held to the side oftube 11 in any desired manner, such as welding, riveting or bolting, andwhich member generates a vortex in the fluid passing through the tube11, as illustrated by the lines 15. The mixer 13 has a leading edge 16with a curved surface and trailing edge 17 with a curved surface butwith an arced tail and is generally an elongated body with an elongatedcurved surface 18 between leading edge 16 and trailing edge 17. Ametering conduit 20 is connected to tube 11 at 21 and has a meteringvalve 22 therein for metering a second fluid as illustrated by the arrow23 into the first fluid at the beginning of the vortex 15. Fluid is fedto valve 22 from a tank 24. It will of course be clear that the liquidcould also be metered into the tube 11 by the use of an aspiratordesigned to meter the fluid at a desired rate, which could be used inconjunction with a venturi illustrated by dotted lines 25, which venturiof course provides increased velocity with reduced pressure of the fluidpassing through the tube 11, which by aspiration can draw a fluid from apipe such as 20 having a nozzle 21 into tube 11 at a predetermined rate.

It should also be pointed out at this point that more than oneconnecting tube 20 can also be fed into tube 11 simultaneously and thatthe system has the flexibility to improve mixing by way of a secondfluid vortex mixer 13 in the tube 20 just prior to entering tube 11 at21 to produce a swirling motion in the fluid being metered into tube 11so that the tube vortexes engage each other at their beginning toproduce mixing of the fluids. The present invention is described inconnection with fluids in their gaseous state such as air, carbondioxide or similar type gases, but it is not intended to be limited tofluids in their gaseous state and operated equally well with liquid typefluids.

FIG. 2 shows conduit 11 to be of a rectangular or square variety, butthis is not important to the invention which could have a tube of anydesired shape. It also illustrates a cross section of the mixing member13 along with the bolts 14 attaching and mixing member 13 to in teriorwall to conduit 11.

FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate a second embodiment of the present inventionhaving a tube 30 with a fluid vortex mixer 31 attached to the interiorwalls by bolts 32. The tube 30 is a circular passageway as distinguishedfrom the embodiment in FIGS. 1 and 2 and also has a different shapemixer 31 with a leading edge 33 and a trailing edge 34 with a curvedsurface therebetween 35, having a dilferent shape but still beingelongated but without the arced tail illustrated in FIG. 1. Thisembodiment has mixer 31 aligned in a generally parallel position to theaxis of the conduit 30 but it has also been found slight variations inangle will still produce the desired swirling action of fluids passingthrough the conduit 30.

Turning now to FIGS. -7, an embodiment of the present invention isillustrated having a carburetor 40 for an internal combustion typeengine connected to the intake manifold 41 with an adapter 42, having aconduit or passageway 43 therein connected between the carburetor 40 andthe intake manifold 41 by bolts 44 and having an insulator 45 placedbetween the adapter 42 and the intake manifold 41 to isolate the heat ofthe intake manifold from the carburetor and from the adapter 42. Theadapter 42 has a plurality for vortex mixers 46 in accordance with thepresent invention placed therein which may extend into the carburetorand manifold as desired but need not necessarily do so. The vortexmixers have leading edges 47 of a curved nature and are elongatedmembers with trailing edges 48 which are generally narrower than leadingedge 47.

PIGS. 6 and 7 will show the fluid mixer in this embodiment to be of thetype illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 and to use three such vortexes. Thesemixers reduce the area of the intake manifold at the point they areplaced and produce a venturi action if they are of sufiicient size andnumbers which increases the vortex within the passageways. Each vortexmember 46 is held to the adapter 42 by bolts 48, but again it will beclear that other types of attachments could be used for the vortexmixers 46,

such as spotwelds or even being cast directly into the adapter 42 ormanifold.

Referring now to FIGS. 8 and 9, an embodiment of the present inventionis illustrated in a tube 50 having a dividing member 51 passingtherethrough with the fluid vortex generator 52 attached thereto byscrews 53. Vortex generating member 52 has a curved leading edge 54 anda trailing edge 55 with one side 56 having a generally curved shape of agreater length between the leading edge 54 and the trailing edge 55 thanthe other side 57.

FIGS. 10 and 11 illustrate an embodiment similar to that in FIGS. 8 and9 except with a tube 60 having a triangular shaped center member 61 heldin the middle of the tube and with three vortex generating members 62attached to member 61. Each vortex generating member 62 is attached tocenter member 61 by bolts 63 and is otherwise similar in shape to theprevious embodiments. Center member 61 can be held by bars 64 or anysimilar means and input tubes 65 may enter towards the trailing edge 66of the vortex generating members 62 from any of the different sides.

The present invention has been demonstrated to be well suited for use inthe intake and exhaust systems of internal combustion engines and may beplaced in the air filter or in the intake manifolds, and in thetailpipes of the automobile to improve the fluid flow within thesystems, and may also be utilized in mixing two or more fluids togetherfor metering one fluid into another. It has also been successfullytested for improving the action of liquid and gaseous fluids and in fireextinguishers utilizing CO for extending the range and spread in theseflre extinguishers. It is not intended that the present invention belimited to particular sizes or shapes but for illustrative purposes thevortex mixing members generally produce a low pressure area on one sidewith the high pressure area on the other to produce the rotation at theopposite end of the mixing members. This requires one surface havingmore of a curvature than the other and will be varied in size inaccordance with the size of the conduit that it is placed in and thenumber of such mixers placed in the conduit. One such system that I haveused successfully in a one inch diameter pipe provided a mixer thatextended approximately 7 of an inch above the wall it was attached toand reached approximately A of an inch at its widest point between theleading and trailing edges with a distance of approximately 2 inchesbetween the leading and trailing edges having a curved leading edge withthe other side being a substantially straight line. The curved siderises rapidly to a maximum with a gradually sloping side coming to apoint or finish at the trailing edge. This particular mixer was utilizedsingly and in groups to produce the improved mixing results.

This invention is not to be construed as limited to the particular formsdisclosed herein since these are to be regarded as illustrative ratherthan restrictive.

I claim:

1. A vortex fluid mixing apparatus comprising in combination:

(a) tubular means adapted for fluid to pass therethrough;

(b) venturi means for increasing the velocity of fluid passing throughsaid tubular means and being located inside said tubular means;

(c) fluid vortex mixing means \fixedly attached to the inner surface ofsaid tubular means and adapted to produce a vortex in fluid passingthrough said tubular means;

(d) said vortex mixing means having at least one elongated member with aleading edge and a trailing edge, said leading edge having a curvedportion for facing oncoming fluid in said tubular means and said vortexmixing means having a pair of elongated sides connecting said leadingand trailing edges, one side being longer than the other said side, saidpair of elongated member sides having a substantially uniform depth; and

(cl second tubular means for feeding a second fluid into said tubularmeans and operatively connected to said tubular means and beingdownstream from the leading edge of said vortex mixing means wherebyfluid fed into said tubular means will be mixed with the fluid passingthrough said tubular means by the vortex generated by said vortex mixingmeans.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1 in which said vortex mixing meansincludes a plurality of elongated members.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2 in which said plurality ofelongated members from said venturi in said tubular means.

4. The apparatus in accordance with claim 1 in which each said elongatedmember is attached to said inner sur- UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,017,04310/1935 Galliot 48-180 M 2,645,463 7/1953 Stearns 48-180 X 3,223,39412/1965 Walsh 261-79 R MORRIIS O. WOLK, Primary Examiner R. E. SERWIN,Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R.

48-180 R, M, B; 123-141; 169-15; 259-19; 261- 79 R

